Currently we find our young heroes inside of a tent in the middle of a forest. Inside the tent was also the Team, from Earth-16 with them as well… however not all members of the Team were present; only Wally, Artemis, Robin and Zatanna, as the rest of them had decided to stay back with Red Tornado to help him out with the parent/teacher conferences
"This just doesn't seem right somehow. We should have a fire" said Cassie "A campout isn't a campout without a real fire. It's no fun at all" continued the protégé of Wonder Woman with her arms hugging her knees. The rest of the teens were either eating snacks, drinking a soda or talking to one another
"But the generator is far more efficient, Cassie. It's non-polluting, it poses no threat of forest fire and it's…it's…" Rob said only to trail of at the unimpressed looks of Cassie, Kon, Zatanna and Wally.
Rob sighed and decided to correct himself "It's no fun at all" he said with a small nervous smile. Robin and Artemis had their mouths covered with their hands in an attempt to hide their giggles at how Rob was sucked into agreeing with the others
Rob noticing their covered mouths could only guess that they were trying to hide their laughs and glared at them both. He decided to ignore them and turned towards the speedster from their world "Bart… would you mind getting some wood for a… fire" said the boy wonder as he suddenly found his cape over his head, and heard multiple laughs coming from around him as he slowly pulled his cape of off his head and saw a lot of wood
A few minutes later
"It's great that your moms gave the okay for you girls to join us" Kon said flying above everyone with some wood in one arm, Secret following right behind him with a smile on her face and Bart running behind the Dark Knight's protégé
"Yeah. Some mothers would go ballistic about a co-ed camp-out. Did yours give you any problems?" Rob asked holding a flashlight in front of him, while looking at the two girls in question
"Uhhh" "No" "No. Definitely no" "Nope" "Zip" both Cassie and Cissie said, but Robin who was walking beside Kid Flash behind everyone else, could tell there was more to their story. However he wasn't about to go to and ask them, since it seemed they didn't wish to share
"My mother would be alright with it, I mean she does let me go out and fight crime with a bow and arrow after all" Artemis commented from beside Zatanna. The young magician on the other hand shrugged when she saw the group look at her for an answer
Soon the group of teens found a spot and Kon dumped his pile of wood on the ground, with Rob, Artemis and Robin rearranging the wood "So Rob… Imp… How do you think the parent, mentors, etc… are getting along in the first Young Justice parent/teacher conference?" Kon said with his arms crossed as he watched Rob start a fire with a lighter he got out from his utility belt
"It's probably a lot of dull yanking" Bart commented as he bend down to see Rob light up the fire soon after
Meanwhile in Mount Justice
"Y'know, somehow, when Arrowette's mother said she'd been released from psychiatric observation, I knew she meant she'd released herself" commented Max Mercury with a hand on his head. It appeared that Cissie's mother had grabbed a hold of Cassie's mother and pushed her head onto the… cake?
"Your assessment Max Mercury would seem to be correct. Mrs. Jones will your altercation with Wonder Girl's mother, Mrs. Sandsmark, be concluded soon? We do have a full agenda" Red Tornado said with his robotic arms crossed and the rest of the reactions were basically Dubbilex with a surprised look on his face as well as the remainder of the Team members, consisting of Megan, Kaldur and Conner
"You had that coming, lady" said Cissie's mother as she got out of the cake and turned to glare at the woman who had placed her head on a cake! "Oh you want a piece of me now? Take your best shot. I'm a trainer superheroes, lady. And you're some museum something-or-other. You haven't got a-" whatever else Cissie's mother wanted to say was cut of as Cassie's mother threw a piece of cake onto her face
"You … arrogant—oooo!" Cassie's mom said and threw herself at Cissie's mom
"Do all human mothers act like this?" asked Megan, but received shrugs from both Conner and Kaldur, as they didn't have an answer for the Martian unfortunately
"No Miss Martian, at least they don't always do" Red Tornado said as he saw the confused faces of the 3 alternate universe members
"Perhaps we should separate them, Max. We could bring reasoning and calm to this spat" Dubbilex commented as he and Max stood side by side
"Dubbilex, when you've been around as long as I have, you know that the only worthwhile things you can bring to a catfight are popcorn and a drink" Max said with his arms crossed and then turned towards the 3 teens in the cave "Get comfortable kids. This may take a while" he said and the teens all sighed and now wished they had gone with the rest of their teammates
"Sigh. What a tragic waste of melon balls" Red Tornado said as he started at all the food being thrown around. Megan nodded her head in agreement as the gathered heroes all saw as both woman went further into the cave
"Uh-oh. That doesn't sound good" Dubbilex said "I hear nothing" Max commented as he didn't understand why Dubbilex was uneasy "That, Max, is exactly my poi-"
"Release me this instant, Nightwing!" Cassie's mother said as she and Cissie's mother appeared with a young adult male in a black and blue costume and a mask covering his eyes
"Not until you both calm down" said the hero dubbed Nightwing in a serious tone as the teens all looked at him with curious faces. He was a new face for them, but at the same time he sort of felt familiar… "You're lucky Batman was tied up and couldn't make it. One glare from him and you'd be ready to confess to having been on the Grassy Knoll. Red Tornado… you mind telling me what the heck happened?... and who on Earth those 3 teenagers are?!" Nightwing asked as he took note of Megan, Conner and Kaldur and saw their expressions of surprise and curiosity
"I will answer your second question after I answer your first one. It started rather peacefully to tell the-"
Back with Young Justice
"Truth… or dare? I don't know Arrowette" Rob said as he and the others were all sitting around the fire with a couple of s'mores, hotdogs, marshmallows, etc…
"'Cissie' first names remember… well, except for you, mystery boy… and the other Robin" Cissie said as she looked at both Robins "And yeah, truth or dare. It's a fun game…"
"A game! Great!" said Bart, happy with the idea "Where's the goggles?" he asked excitedly and Robin and Wally both stared at each other as they attempted not to laugh
"The what?" Cassie, Zatanna and Artemis all asked confused as they didn't remember any goggles being used in truth or dare before
"The goggles. Joystick, controller, whatever. Is it on batteries, or does it need to be plugged in? Does-?" Bart said super fast until Cissie interrupted him "It's not like that Bart. There're no visuals" she said and everyone could see the disappointed look in the young speedster's eyes
"Maybe one of us should go instead, just so Bart gets it better" Artemis interrupted as Cissie nodded at the idea "Watch and learn Bart. Wally!" Artemis called as Kid Flash looked over at her surprised she had chosen him as her target "Truth or dare?"
Wally could be seen going over the pros and cons of which he should choose "I choose truth!" he declared and Robin, if he had his mask of would have been seen rolling his eyes at the choice his friend had decided on. Knowing Artemis she would start to tease Wally in 3… 2… 1
"What too chicken to do a dare Baywatch?" Artemis teased, knowing that Wally wasn't much of one to turn down a challenge
"See Bart you have to either answer a question truthfully or do a dare. I used to play it at school all the-" "I'll go first!" Bart interrupted her as he now seemed excited with the idea
"Uhm, okay. Truth or dare?" Cissie asked "DARE!" Bart replied
"Okay. You have to… uh… hmm. You, uh… uh… look, maybe you want to do truth?" Cissie asked him, not knowing what to tell him
"No. Dare. I'm ready. Let's go. Dare me. I dare you to dare me" Bart told her as Cissie sighed and tried to think of a dare "You have to… uh… hmm…"
"What's the problem, Arro-Cissie?" Rob asked
"Well, what's the fun of daring 'Impulse'? Bart'll just do what I suggest without thinking, like always" Cissie told the Boy Wonder and Rob nodded at her predicament
"How about this…" he started saying and turned towards young speedster "Bart… I dare you to be quiet for five minutes, starting right… now" Rob told him
"Five minutes in a row?" Bart asked not realizing that the 5 minutes
"Ha! That was, what, half a second?" Cissie laughed as so did the others
"Aw, wait a minute! I can do this. Starting now. Total silence. Here I go" Bart said as he sat down with his legs crossed
"How long do you give him?" Zatanna asked Wally and Robin
"I say 30 seconds" Wally said wanting to give his cousin the benefit of doubt
"I say 15" Robin replied as the trio see Kon crawl over to Bart
"Hey Imp, nice hair" Kon said, though whether he meant it or not was a mystery
"Hey, thanks, I don't even know what I was thinking when I…" Bart trailed of as he realized he was tricked into talking "… shaved it" he finished lamely with his head turned away from the rest of the group who was laughing at his misfortune "Okay, fine, ha ha, kid. Cheap shot, kid" Bart said with a glare towards Kon
"Can I go next? I want to go next" Secret said
"I'm not done yet!" Bart angrily said, but was grabbed by Artemis who pushed him back down "Yes you are" she told him
"Okay… truth or dare, Secret?" Cassie asked "Truth"
"Okay… talk about your first time" Cassie ominously said and made the others look at her with different expressions "Hey! C'mon! Leave her alone!" Kon told the black haired girl
"No, it's okay, Superboy. I don't mind talking about my first time. Umm… My first time… what exactly?" Secret asked after not understanding what it was Cassie was asking her
"The first time you…" Cassie said, but then saw the annoyed and angry looks of her teammates and the other teams faces "… y'know… kissed a guy.." she said finishing of her question "Geez, guys ease up! What'd'ja think I was gonna say?" Cassie questioned them
"Oh. That. Well, understand… a lot of my earlier memories are a bit confused" she started saying as she stared at the ground "But I remember… there was this young man at the D.E.O… kind of a lab assistant or something… One night he slipped into my room… tried to kiss me, I think… and then he looked into my eyes and suddenly started screaming. He wouldn't stop. They had to take him away in an ambulance, I think. Does that time count?" Secret explained and looked back up a everyone
"Guys?" Secret asked seeing the shocked looks on their faces "Umm… who's next?" she uncertainly asked
"I'll go" Zatanna said breaking of the silence as Cassie nodded and looked towards Kon, who sighed and asked the magician the same question Cassie had asked Secret "Truth or dare?"
Zatanna thought about it for a moment and then answered with truth "Alright… if I were to ask you to a date…would you say yes or no?" Kon asked curiously. After all the Zatanna of their world was older than all of them. Zatanna looked at Kon for awhile and then shrugged "I don't know. Maybe, but it depends mostly" she said, but Kon took that as a yes in his book and nodded
Back in Mount Justice
Meanwhile Red Tornado was currently starting to explain what it was that had happened before Nightwing arrived "Matters began peacefully enough. All parent or mentors arrived promptly at the main entrance. The woman seemed wary of each other, but no other problems were apparent. Deciding not to wait for you, Nightwing, I gave them a tour of the facility and then led them to the meeting room. Once there, I gave what I felt were reasonable opening remarks"
Flashback
"Greetings. Parents and mentors. I wish to welcome you all. Bonnie Jones. Mother of Arrowette… Dubbilex. Representing Cadmus' interest in Superboy… Max Mercury. Zen master of speed and mentor to Impulse… and Helena Sandsmark. Curator at the Gateway City Museum of Cultural Antiquities and Wonder Girl's mother" Red Tornado said as he introduced everyone to each other
"Well, you win for most impressive title, Mrs. Sandsmark" Bonnie said as she sat down on one of the many chairs around the table
"Some of us have lives outside of our children, Mrs. Jones" Helena responded from a different seat across from Bonnie
"Meaning" Bonnie said with a irritated tone "Nothing. Sorry; it's been a long day"
End of Flashback
"And that is, in essence what happened" Red Tornado finished
"Well, that certainly accomplished a lot. We're supposed to be here to talk about the kids, not act like kids" Nightwing said with both hands clasped together
"Are you Robin's father?" Bonnie asked as Megan, Kaldur and Conner all looked at the black and blue hero
"Well, no…" Nightwing responded turning to face her "Then you couldn't possibly know what it's like" Bonnie responded wiping her face
Nightwing walked over towards the blonde and leaned closer to her "Lady, every morning when I drift to sleep, I hear the screams of loved ones I didn't save. Don't you dare lecture me on what I know" Nightwing said with a very dead serious tone "Now… can we get back to business?" he said facing the others once again. He glanced at the 3 teens still in the room, but knew it was more important to talk about Young Justice. He would ask Batman later on about this new devolvement
Back in the forest
"Ooookay, Bambi. Just hold still" said a man with blonde hair beside another man with brown hair holding a rifle "And your head'll be right up on the wall next to your mom's" said brown haired man taking aim for the poor animal. Just as he shot a blur ran by the deer, knocking away the bullets
"I AM THE GHOST OF EVERY CRETURE YOU EVER KILLED, WRAPPED INTO ONE MONSTER OF VENGENCE. GET OUT OF THE WOODS AND NEVER COME BACK. GET OUT! GET OUT!" said a very big ghostly monster, startling the hunters as the ran away in fear
With Young Justice
"Ah, Bart! Secret! You're back! That was fast. So who was tromping around out there?" Rob asked as both Bart and Secret came back "Some hunters think they took up another sport, though: cross-country sprinting" Bart responded as he took a seat in-between Kon and Cissie
"Imp, did you guys terrorize two Americans who were simply out having a good ol' time killing god's creatures?" asked Kon
"Yup" Bart said as Kon and him shared a high five with Rob, Zatanna, Cissie and Cassie all sighing at the two
"I would have actually loved to see that" Artemis said once she heard what Bart and Secret had done. She turned towards Wally, who knew what the archer was thinking
"You should have gone with them and gotten footage of that!" she said with a glare. Wally sighed as he shrugged. How was he suppose to know that was going to happen anyway
"Artemis, he couldn't have known that Bart and Secret were going to pull off a stunt like that. They both just ran off without a word" Robin defended his friend and Wally something thought that maybe his friend was secretly psychic or something
"Superboy, your turn to pick somebody" Cissie told the boy of steel
"Okay…. Rob. Truth or dare?" Kon said once he found his target
"Dare" Rob said with no hesitation at all
"Take your mask off, mystery boy" Kon said as everyone had their full attention towards the Robin of this Earth. Rob didn't say a word as he stood up and slowly reached for his mask. This caused many to gaps, except for Robin and Wally, both of whom just smirked
Back in Mount Justice
"Thus far, the team has bonded well. The boys seem relaxed in the girls presence, despite some initial posturing and preening- primarily from Superboy. But it seems no more than harmless flirtation. Robin is either too serious-minded or, perhaps, otherwise involved and Impulse simply appears oblivious" "That's my boy" Max Mercury said after hearing about Bart
"I intend to keep each of you apprised of their progress. Likewise, if there are any traumatic occurrences in the lives of your respective charges that you feel could impact. Please keep me informed" Red Tornado said addressing everyone seated. Of to the side stood Megan, Kaldur and Conner, who were all having a mental conversation amongst themselves
"I wonder how Artemis, Zatanna, Wally and Robin are handling the other team… hope they're having fun" Megan commented
"Maybe we should have gone with them instead of staying here, listening to adults talk about boring things" Conner said with his arms crossed
Kaldur nodded at both their points and could see Nightwing throwing them a glance every few minutes "Megan… have you been able to get a read on any of the adults in the room?"
"Well I was able to get a read on Helena, who seems pretty worried about Wonder Girl. Max Mercury is radiating pride at how it seems Impulse is behaving. Bonnie has a lot of her thoughts jumbled up. The ones I can't get anything out of are Dubbilex who seems to be a telepath and Nightwing, who's mind is completely shut off from me" she explained as Kaldur nodded and now knew the reason as to why Nightwing was looking at them with a suspicious glance
"You know… you people are something else. You look at me like I'm the queen shrew of the world. You call me manipulative, controlling. I'm controlling?" the trio heard Bonnie say as their attention turned back towards the adults "This group is something that the kids felt strongly about. I trust my daughter, to follow her training, do the best job she can and know her own mind. I'm not the one who's having second thoughts"
"Well, maybe you should" Helena cut in, before she was interrupted by Bonnie "Well, maybe you shouldn't. Cissie and I have been through a lot, but we have a good solid relationship. If Cissie didn't want this, she would have told me and I wouldn't have pushed her. Controlling? I'm not in you people's league. If you'll excuse me…" the blonde woman said as she started walking away
"Why did you lie about knowing that Arrowette had been injured?" Dubbilex asked
"I wasn't lying. I don't know what you're talking ab-" "I am telepathic madam, and I know as surely as I speak the truth now that you were not forthcoming before"
"Shut up, you.. you thing! Cissie tells me everything! Why wouldn't she! I knew that was hurt, and you stay out of my head!" Bonnie angrily said
The teens in the room all sighed at the antics of the woman… it seemed she and Cissie may not be as close as she says they are
"This endeavor… is not without risk. If any of you wishes to withdraw your young charges… please say so now" Red Tornado said which brought silence as the adults all held a thinking expression on their faces
Back with Young Justice
"Oh, you're a riot, Rob" Kon said after awhile of silence
"Knew a Bat would pull something like that" Artemis said throwing a glare towards her Earth's Robin "He did the same thing to us once"
"Haha! Ya that was super funny! Your faces that day was so worth it" Robin said laughing at the memory Artemis had brought up
"When we decided to do this camp-out thing, I figured this game might come up and I figured one of you might be wise acre enough to make that dare. So I wore an extra mask underneath" Rob explained while holding the mask he just recently took off
"You were potty trained weren't you" Cassie said
"What's that got to do with anything?" Wally asked, only to receive a smack to the head
"Robin… would you lose the mask… if you could? You know… give the whole thing up. Being Robin. Would you just be normal… if you could?" Cissie asked as once again everyone was
"Isn't this a 'truth' question, Robin's turn is over…" Secret told the red archer
"Forget that. I'm… curious. Could you give up the excitement and being Batman's sidekick? If you could just be normal, would you quit the superhero game?" Cissie continued her question
"In a heartbeat" Rob said with no hint of hesitation in his voice
"NO! GET OUT!" "No way! REALLY!" both Kon and Cassie said at the same time
"If I were no longer Robin… that would mean that no more innocent people were being threatened. No more criminals were going around breaking the law. No one was living in fear of their lives. No more crime or wrong doing. It would mean that mankind has entered utopia and I'd be happy for humanity. Because that would be the only circumstance under which I'd quit the game" Rob said with his arms around his legs and making everyone silent with his explanation
Robin took in the words of the other Robin and could see his point. He had come into the whole hero world at first just so he could catch the one who murdered his family… however after that day and everything that came after… well he could never imagined being able to go back to a normal life… it would just feel… wrong or like something was missing
"How about you, Cissie? How do you feel about the game? Would you quit?" Rob asked after a few seconds of silence
"I'd ask my mother's advice… and then do the opposite" Cissie said only to notice Wally, Kon and Bart laughing lightly "Oh, sure you guys can snicker. I have no idea how much of what's in my head if from her or from me, or if there's any 'me' left. She did everything she could to push me"
"And mine would be thrilled if I gave it up. Maybe we should swap moms" Cassie jumped in
"Oh, Cass, you have like, no clue what you're saying. I take it you wouldn't leave the game"
"Leave it! Are you kidding? What we're doing here… it's… it's mythic! We're continuing an epic of heroism and adventure that goes back millennia! How could anyone walk away from that? They'd have to tear the game from my cold, dead fingers before I'd give it up!" Cassie said as she stood up with her arms in the air "Impulse… how about you? Would you be normal, if you could?"
"I don't understand the question. I am normal. It's the rest of the world that's weird" Bart responded while holding a stick with burnt marshmallows and in the other a couple of
"It'd be hard for me to live a normal life with a family full of villains… the only one who gave it all up was my mom… she did her time in prison and gave it all up… unlike my sister and father" Artemis said as the teens all gave her sympathy glances
"Hey the reason I got into the hero life is because I recreated the accident that gave Flash his powers. I don't know about now, but no way do I wanna get out of this life! Although I wish people would get my name right" "Yeah Flash Boy" "Kid Flash!"
Zatanna didn't comment, but for her this was technically normal. She had been born with her magic abilities and her father had trained her from a very young age… Although she would give anything to have her father back… why did she have to put on the helmet that day?
"I'd give anything to be normal. You guys have parents and outside lives. Me, I float around cities and see kids going about their lives, laughing, talking, loving and I'm just so jealous" Secret said with a sigh "Superboy… what about you? The Red Tornado told me you're stuck at the age you are now. For you, being normal would be even more important"
"For me? Nah. I- What are you all starin' at?" Kon asked seeing everyone
"You… can't grow up? That's like… so sad…" Cassie said breaking the silence
"You won't be able to experience the chance of becoming an adult" Zatanna added, who had been very quiet
"Sad?! You kiddin'? I'm the luckiest one here! First off… I'm Superboy, which is cool, but I've got the dream everyone has: Eternal youth! Heck, I'm not just Superboy. I'm Peter-flippin'-Pan! You guys have to worry about a;; the stuff you'll have to deal with as you get older, but not me! No way!" Kon said standing up and holding a stick in the air for extra
"Aren't you even a little regretful about everything you'll miss by never being an adult?" Rob asked the happy boy of steel
"Ask me that thirty years from now, when you're pullin' hairs from your comb and getting' your prostate checked!" Kon said pointing at himself as a lot of the girls glared at him for the hair part
"I am livin' large Rob! I am the king of Neverland and I wouldn't have it any other way! Grow up, old and die? Forget it! You guys gotta grow! Me, I gotta crow! COCK-A-DOODLE DOOOOO!" Kon said from up high in the air
"In denial" Cissie said as she and the others all stared up at the flying teen
"Big time" Rob agreed
"Ohhh yeah" Cassie said next
"No point in denying it" Robin added in
Back in Mount Justice
"I'm pleased that you've all approved your youngsters participating in this endeavor" Red Tornado said as he and the other adults came to a conclusion
"Finally they finished this whole thing" Conner whispered sounding relived that the whole meeting was over… and also because none of them could understand the game 'Go Fish' which they had found 10 minutes ago
"Yes… I did not know that a meeting like this could go on for so long. Perhaps this is what the Justice League did when we first started off" Kaldur replied as he saw Megan pick up the items of the game
"Impulse told me that they're having a camp-out tonight. That sounds so benign, I'm almost afraid to think it's true" said Max
"Yes. That's quire correct"
"What's so bad about a camp-out? We've had one before?" Megan asked her two teammates as they shrugged
"Now that's coincidence. Cassie is on a camp-out tonight, too" Helena said as Bonnie nodded in agreement "So's Cissie"
"Yes. They're with the boys and a few members of the other team" Tornado informed
"THEY'RE HAVING AN OVERNIGHT SLUMBER PARTY WITH BOYS?!" "ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR PENTIUM MIND?"
"I… do not understand. They are teammates. Certainly a mixed gender camp-out pales in gravity next to a battle with supervillains" Red Tornado said
"Don't bet on it! Where are they? I'm going to kill Cissie!" Bonnie said as she angrily started making her way out "You'll have to step over Cassie's body to do it!" Helena said right behind the blonde
Back with Young Justice
"So… what's that song…? Oh yeah. 'Me… and my shaaadoww… All alone and feee… liiing… bluuue…' Hey. Hey where do you think you're going? What're you doing? NO! No… Don't grow up! Don't leave me! If you do, I'll… I'll really be… be alone!" Kon said as he sat by himself as saw as his shadow grew up into an adult only to leave him all alone
"Superboy…?" asked a familiar voice
"Oh… hi, Reddy… ladies. Sorry… kind of half-dreaming. You know how that is…" Kon said trailing of at the end
"No. I do not. Wonder Girl's and Arrowette's mothers wish to have a talk with them" Tornado said as both woman stood their beside Tornado
"Everyone's gone to sleep… 'cept me. We just all kind of talked ourselves out… even Robin the night owl himself. Go figure. The other members of the other team also fell asleep… except for their Robin who stayed with me for awhile, until I asked him for some alone time. The girls' tent is right there" Kon said figuring he's kept them waiting too long as he pointed towards one of the many tents in the area
Helena and Bonnie nodded as they made their way towards the tent, only to smile at the sight of seeing the girls all sleeping peacefully
"Look, Bonnie… we don't agree on much, but can we agree that anything we have to say to them can wait until morning?" Helena asked the blonde
"I suppose… Helena" Bonnie agreed "I wish I had my camera. Didn't they look cute?" she said as the three made their way back "Cute? It was to die for!" Helena said with Kon staring at them sadly
"And like Peter Pan said… 'To die would be a great adventure'" Kon sadly said staring up into the sky and left alone with his own thoughts
"Kon? You coming to bed?" asked a male voice as the teen turned and saw Robin still wide awake "Ya… I'm coming" he told the alternate Boy Wonder